1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a collapsible boom for use with a motor vehicle; and more particularly, to a boom which is portable, in that it may be readily and conveniently collapsed for storage in a limited space within a vehicle and thereafter quickly and easily attached to the vehicle for use with a powered winch and cable to lift heavy objects; as for example, in emergency operations by a rescue unit truck.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
Various devices have been proposed in the past for attachment to vehicles for the purpose of hoisting large objects. See for example, the tractor attachments shown in the U.S. Patents to Lathers U.S. Pat. No. (2,470,857), to Hart U.S. Pat. No. (2,797,829), and Bergerson et al (U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,077,338 and 3,141,654). Prior art tow truck attachments are exemplified by the U.S. Patents to Heinss U.S. Pat. No. (2,450,798) and Guerard (U.S. Pat. No. 2,864,584). Special purpose truck mounted hoisting devices are shown in the U.S. Patents to Smith (U.S. Pat. No. 1,372,838 --to placement of telephone poles) and to Ferguson (U.S. Pat. No. 2,436,510 --to tree puller).
The prior art devices cited above, while structurally sound and useable, suffer from the deficiency that they are relatively heavy in construction, and are cumbersome or impossible to disassemble and store in a compartment within the vehicle. Therefore, they are of no real value for use with a multipurpose vehicle such as, for example, a medical aid truck, or a truck adapted for emergency rescue work.
Accordingly, some of the primary objects of this invention are to provide a new and improved collapsible boom assembly which is: (1) portable, in that it may be quickly attached to a vehicle for use with a winch and cable system, then compactly collapsed for storage in a relatively small space within the vehicle; (2) structurally efficient and capable of handling large loads; (3) lightweight for convenience in handling; and (4) suitable for use with a multipurpose vehicle such as a medical aid truck or a truck adapted for emergency rescue work.